Machine for making book covers



Se t. 14, 1965 w. c. BOYLE MACHINE FOR MAKING BOOK COVERS 4 SheetsSheet 1 Filed April 15, 1960 N wI ESI

INVENTOR.

WILLIAM G. BO LE ATTORNEYS P 14, 1965 w. c. BOYLE 3,206,349

MACHINE FOR MAKING BOOK COVERS INVENTOR.

WILLIAM C. BOYLE ATTORNEYS Sept. 14, 1965 w. c. BOYLE MACHINE FOR MAKING BOOK COVERS Filed April 15, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR.

WELLIAM c. BOYLE BY if I; m,

ATTORNEYS Sept. 14, 1965 w. c. BOYLE MACHINE FOR MAKING BOOK COVERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 15, 1960 FIG. 60

FIG. 6b

INVENTOR. WILLIAM C. BOYLE FIG. 8

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,206,349 MACHINE FOR MAKING BOOK COVERS William C. Boyle, Melrose, Mesa, assignor to General Box Company, Waycross, Ga, a corporation of Florida Filed Apr. 13, 1960, Ser. No. 22,050 1 Claim. (Cl. 156-5I7) In my Patent No. 2,922,172 there is described a machine for making a book casing or cover consisting of a cover layer of cardboard which forms a part of both cover boards and extends across the book back, and a pair of cardboards which are laminated to this layer to form rela tively stiff cover boards. This type of easing may be finished with a printed cover or wrapper which binds the edges. Inexpensive books including childrens editions make wide use of such casings. The sections or signatures may be sewn or bound by any of the usual methods and a lining of fabric, tape or paper is ordinarily glued or otherwise adhered to the back or spine and to adjacent margins of the end papers. The end papers and the lining are in turn glued to the casing.

In certain editions it is desired to provide a cover having a flat, stiff spine which does not flex appreciably in use and which will bear printing such as the title, author and publisher. It is a principal object of this invention to provide such a cover while retaining economies of manufacture associated with the method of the above patent.

Another object related to the first is to provide flexible crease margins beween the relatively stilt cover boards and the spine of the cover, whereby the opening and closing of the book is accommodated substantially entirely by flexure of the creases, as in more expensive editions. This makes it possible in many cases to strengthen the attachment of the cover by means of glue between the spine of the book and the spine of the cover.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the features of this invention include certain improvements in a machine of the general kind described in said patent, including the provision of Web slitting means for slitting a spine stiffener web from a wider web forming a leaf stiffener lamina. The spine stiffener web has glue applied thereto and is guided on to the cover web in accurately spaced relationship to the leaf stiffener laminae on both of the cover leaves.

Another feature of the invention resides in the possibility of providing a dilferent thickness for the spine of the cover than for the cover leaves which are ordinarily subjected to greater abuse and wear.

The combining of the stiffener webs with the cover web is carried out by a pressure roll which is built up radially with a suitable sleeve opposed to the spine stiffener web, whereby the pressure of said roll is substantially uniform upon the spine and leaf stifiener webs as they are combined with the cover web.

Other features of the invention reside in certain details of construction of the machine and in certain modes of operation that will become more evident from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, having reference to the appended drawings in which FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the feed rolls;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the feed rolls corresponding to FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the gluing and combining section of the machine including the spine slitting, guiding, gluing and combining apparatus according to this invention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view corresponding to FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the cut-off section of the machine;

FIG. 6 is a plan view corresponding to FIG. 5;

FIG. 6a is an end elevation of the cut-off roll 150 and the anvil roll 148 shown in FIG. 5;

a ate Patented Sept. 14, 1965 FIG. 6b is a fragmentary detail view showing the assembly of the cut-off knives on the cut-off roll FIG. 7 is a view in perspective of a book cover produced according to the invention;

FIG. 8 is an elevation in section taken on line 8-8 in FIG. 3; and FIG. 9 is a fragmentary elevation in section of a typical book bound with a cover produced according to the invention.

Referring to the drawings, the machine is arranged for convenience in three sections, a feed section shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a gluing and combining section shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and a trimming and cut-off section shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The feed and gluing and combining sections are assembled for convenience on a common stationary bed 12 supported on legs 14. The trimming and cut-off section is supported on a separate stationary bed 16 spaced from the bed 12 and similarly supported on legs 18. It will be understood that the particular means employed in this latter section are largely a matter of choice and typical means have been shown in the interest of completeness.

The bed 12 is provided with three pairs of roll supports of which the front pair receives a cover roll 20 equal in width to the sum of the widths of the crease margins, the cover boards and the cover spine. The other supports receive shafts 22 and 24 having circular spacer plates 26 and 28. It will be understood that the spacer plates may be eliminated in instances where the webs are adequately guided without them. The shaft 24 receives two mill rolls 34 and 36 of equal width. The shaft 22 receives a mill roll 38 equal in width to the rolls 34 and 36 and a mill roll 40 which is wider than the rolls 34, 36 and 38 by a width equal to that of the desired spine stiffener strip hereinafter more fully described with reference to FIG. 7. A cover web 42 is drawn from the roll 20 toward the gluing and combining section illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4. Four stiffener webs 4-4, 46, 48 and 50 are fed respectively from the rolls 34, 36, 38 and 40 to the gluing and combining section. The rolls 34 and 36 are preferably spaced by a distance equal to the sum of the widths of the crease margins plus the cover spine. The roll 38 is preferably aligned with the roll 34 and the roll 40 is spaced from the roll 38 by a distance equal to the sum of the widths of the crease margins.

The machine hereinafter more fully described slits, glues, combines, trims and severs the foregoing webs to form book covers such as the cover 52 illustrated in FIG. 7. This cover is of laminated construction comprising an outer cover 53, leaf stiffener laminae 54, 56, 58 and 60 derived respectively from the webs 44, 46, 48 and 50 and a spine stiffener strip 62 derived from the widest stiffener web 50 in the manner hereinafter more fully described. Crease margins 63 separate the cover boards and the spine. The book cover 52 is of unitary finished appearance. Side edges 64 are precisely aligned and parallel. The top and bottom edges 66 are also precisely aligned and perpendicular to the edges 64. If desired, the visible surfaces of the cover or laminae may be decorated by printing, or a thin cover paper or wrapping C may be applied in such a manner as to leave the stiffener strip and laminae exposed except at the visible edges, as shown in the sectional view, FIG. 9.

The book cover 52 may be glued to a book as shown in FIG. 9. End papers 67 glued to the cover boards may be pages of the first and last signatures S as shown, or may be attached on a tipping machine in a conventional manner. A tear-resistant cloth, paper or tape lining L is attached to the end papers and to the spine of the book, and glued to the cover boards and the cover spine stiffener strip 62. The margins 63 are creased in the usual manner.

pressure on the combined webs 115. stood, however, that the thickness of the sleeve 137 may "be varied to obtain greater or less pressure on the spine Turning next to a description in detail of the manufacture of the book covers, the mill rolls 20, 34, 36, 38 and 41) are supported in a conventional manner on blocks 68, 70 and 72 (FIG. l) These rolls may be provided with the usual tension adjustment means, for example the means shown in said patent (not illustrated herein). The webs 42, 48 and 50 pass under idler rolls 74 and 76 beneath the bed 12, while the webs 44 and 46 are inclined upwardly and pass over fixed guide plates 78 'and 80 (FIGS. 3 and 4) supported in a first gluing section designated generally at 82.. This latter section has a glue tank 84, a glue pick-up roll 86 and a glue spreader roll 88, all of conventional form, by which glue is applied to the underside of the webs 44 and 46. These webs then pass under a decurling plate 90 to a combining and gluing section designated generally at 92.

The webs 48 and 50 pass under idler rolls 94 and 96 (FIGS 3), and are drawn upwardly over a roll 98 supported in the section 82. Associated with the roll 98 is a knife-edged slitting wheel 100 constructed and supported in a conventional manner and arranged to slit the Web 50 to form a spine portion 102 (FIG. 4) and a remaining portion 104 equal in Width to the web 48. a

The webs 44 and 48 pass over a guiding and combining plate 166 (FIG. 4) where they are joined. Similarly a plate 108 guides and combines the web 46 with the remaining portion 104 of the web 50. The guides 106 and 168 have upwardly extending surfaces adapted to deflect laterally and guide the spine portion 102 to a position equally spaced laterally ofthe combined leaf'stiffener webs on each side.

The webs then pass over a glue spreader roll 1119 replenished by a glue pick-up *roll- 112 from a glue tank 114. Here glue is applied to the Webs 48; and t), including both the remaining portion 104 and the spine portion 102 of the web 50. The twocombined stiffener webs designated 115 pass under a decurling roll 116.

The webs then pass to a final combining Section 118. The coverweb 42 reaches this section after passing under idler rolls 121) and 122. This section is provided with three pairs of pressure rolls 124, 126ar1d 1'28'which apply pressure to bond the combined webs securely together.

At the front end of the section 1 18 the webs enter a guide member 134 (FIG. 8) formed of a horizontal plate 132, vertical edge plates 134and a pair of spaced vertical dividers 135. The spine portion -2 is guided between the dividers 135 to the bite'of the rolls 124. The cover web 42 passes over an idler roll 135a and underthe plate 132 to the bite of the rolls 124. The combined Webs 1'15 pass under bars 136 to the bite of the rolls 124. The upper roll of the pair of rolls 124is provided With-a sleeve 137 substantially equal in thickness to'one of the webs 44 or 46 whereby the pressure of the'bite of the rolls 124 on the spine portion 102 is equal to the corresponding It will be underportion 102 if desired.

A single combined web 138 passes from the section 118 to a trimming and cut-off section 140 illustrated in FIGS.

5 and 6. A pair of accurately spaced circular'knife-edged slitters 142 trim the edges of the web to the precise overall dimension required. These slitters may be eliminated if the stock in use has been pre-cut to accurate width and is precisely guided. Thewebisthenpassed through feed rolls 144 and 146.

From the rolls 144and'146 the web 1'38is fed over a continuous, smooth, 'hard steel anvil roll 148 which cooperates With a cut-off roll 150 having knives 152 and 154. (FIG, 64;) and delivers the book covers to a moving 'belt 156. The rolls 148 and 150 are driven atequal pemechanisms, not shown. The gear 160 is driven by a gear 162 which in turn is rotated by a variable speed drive mechanism 164 of conventional form. The mechanism 164 is powered by a constant speed shaft 166 driven by a motor 168 and is adjustable to deliver variable speed to a gear 17 0 in mesh with the .gear 162. A belt 172 is driven from the motor 168 at constant speed and extends to the section 118 where it is connected by conventional spur gear mechanism (not shown) for driving the pressure rolls 124, 126 and 128. It will be understood that similar connections are provided from the motor to the gluing rolls in the sections 82 and 92 to drive the latter rolls at constant speed.

The side trimming and out-01f section 148 may be constructed as described in said patent. Details of the mounting of a cut-off knife are shown in FIG. 6b. The knife 152, for example, is a straight blade with a sharp tapered edge held in position against the side of a transverse recess 174 in the roll by a clamp bar 176 tightly clamped against the blade 152 by a number of spaced set screws 178. As shown in FIG. 6a, there are two such blades 152 and 154 in diametrically opposed recesses 174 and 18%), but other recesses 182, 184, 186 and 188 are also provided and may be used for additional knives, if required. It will be understood that the number of knives and the adjustment of the variable speed drive 164 determine the top-to-bottom dimension, that is, the height of the book covers. Also, the peripheral velocity of the knives should exceed that of the web to obtain a clean cut. For example, if the length of the book cover from top to bottom is desired to be 12 inches, experience demonstrates that the peripheral speed of the knives should be. about 14 inches per cover to obtain a clean. cut. The cutting action is simultaneous at all points along the cut and hence resembles a chopping action.

To obtain other length of book covers, the adjustment of the variable speed drive 164 maybe changed within certain limits for the illustrated case of two knives; or one, three or six knives may be used, each set of knives providing a different range of possible lengths of cover within a corresponding range of adjustment provided by the drive 164.

The cut-off unit may be replaced, if desired, with any other equivalent means for severing the web, such as a vertically-reciprocating knife.

It will be seen that the machine for making book covers according to this invention is of relatively simple and straight-forward construction, and that the finishedbook covers are accurately dimensioned and are provided with smooth edges on all sides. These covers are of superior quality in that they have stifi laminated cover boards and a cover spine of neat appearance. Thus the wrinkled appearance so often associated with"paper-back books has been effectively eliminated at no substantial increase in the cost of manufacture over the methods described in said patent.

It will be understood that While the invention has been described with. reference to a specific and preferred embodiment thereof, various modifications and adaptations of the parts will occur to one skilled in this art with respect to known techniques, and that these may be performed without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

A machine for making book covers having, in combination, support means for a first roll of relatively stiff book 'cover reinforcing sheet material, means to feed continuously a first'web comprising said material, means to slit the first Web longitudinally to form a spine stiffener portion and at least one remaining portion having a width substantially equal to that of a book tobe covered, means to guide the spine portion in laterally spaced parallel relation to-the remaining-portion to'form a crease margin, support means for a second roll of relatively flexible book cover hinge sheet material, means to feed continuously a,

second web comprising said hinge sheet material in opposed relation to the spaced portions of the first web, means to combine the second Web with pressure adhesively to both of the spaced portions of the first web, support means for a third roll of relatively stiff book cover reinforcing sheet material, means to feed continuously a third Web having substantially the same Width as said remaining portion of the first Web and comprising said last-mentioned sheet material in parallel overlying relationship with said remaining portion, means to combine the third web with pressure adhesively to said remaining portion, a pair of pressure rolls in position to press together all of the combined portions of the webs, at least one of said rolls having a sleeve to enlarge its diameter to its diameter in the region opposite the third Web, and means to sever the combined web transversely at uniform- -ly spaced intervals.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 444,821 1/91 Feister -1 156-517 2,166,038 7/39 Chambon 112 X 2,554,298 5/51 Ferguson et al. 83-107 X 2,772,427 12/56 Rankin 11--2 2,922,172 1/60 Boyle .Q l12 EARL M. BERGERT, Primary Examiner.

in the region opposite the spine stiffener portion in relation 15 R E A. NINAS, JR., Examiner. 

